


The Music Between Us

by thatonedudewiththename



Category: Video Blogging RPF, 방탄소년단 | Bangtan Boys | BTS
Genre: Alcohol, Crack Relationships, Jealousy, Language Barrier, M/M, Other Additional Tags to Be Added, Semi-Public Sex
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-03-05
Updated: 2018-06-16
Packaged: 2019-03-27 09:08:13
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 4
Words: 20,392
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13877691
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/thatonedudewiththename/pseuds/thatonedudewiththename
Summary: Suddenly, in my eyesRain wells upYou well upI see you even when I breatheLove bloomsLike cherry blossomsBut burns and becomes ashesHey girl I knowThe conclusion you made by yourselfYour hand, your body, your body heatThat was hotter than the equatorI'm still here, on repeat on top of the disappeared tuneI'm turning by myself on top of this music that has ended





	1. The Meeting

**Author's Note:**

> all im gonna say about this is: tomodachi life says they love each other

      It was night out when Vinny arrived back home at the ferry terminal to Staten Island; the panels, interviews, meet-n-greets, and walking around was over, and now he could just go home and sleep for a few hours—or days. 

      Home was empty without Molly greeting him at the door; Vinny tried not to think about it as he kicked off his shoes and tossed his bags and coat onto his sofa. He left his keys and his wallet on the coffee table as he laid on the loveseat to take a much-needed-and-deserved nap. Time passed as he laid there, half-lidded eyes kind of watching the clock on his cable box.  
      ...Aaand he was still too wired to sleep. Great. Why did this ALWAYS have to happen whenever he'd come home from something really exhausting? He just wanted to sleep, but it looked like that wouldn't be happening anytime soon. Nothing to do in his apartment that was stimulating enough for his shit brain, either... God, was he really gonna have to get up and go for a walk? Seems like it.  
      Sighing, he swung his legs off the sofa and used the momentum to sit and stand up from it, grabbing his coat from the other couch and slipping it on whilst shuffling back to the door, whereupon he grabbed his wallet and only his house key, sliding into his shoes and pulling them over his heel. After locking up, he headed back to the elevators.  
      The streets outside were uncharacteristically dark and quiet—then again, it was a Tuesday night. Everyone would be working in the morning, so it wouldn't make sense for them to be out now.  
      A cloudy, light-polluted sky hung over his head as he walked towards the ferry, mind racing with thoughts he couldn't bring himself to focus on. He was mentally drained, pretty much incapable of directing any kind of brain power towards thinking or concentrating on anything; it was no surprise that, once he actually managed to refocus his eyes and look around, he was already at the terminal, standing awkwardly in front of the teller. "You gonna get on, or..?" She asked, looking at him like he was a weirdo.  
      Right, right. Vinny took the complimentary brochure being handed to him and boarded the ferry.

      The water lapped gently against the side of the boat as it floated along towards mainland. It was crisp out, the speed of the boat creating a breeze that bit into Vinny's skin through his jacket; he didn't mind it. The cold was a nice change of pace from the stuffy, dry warmth of building heaters, thus why he wasn't waiting out the trip inside the ferry.  
      Normally, he'd take a cab or Uber to New York, since the tunnel was faster and took him directly to the heart of the city, but he'd had his fill of riding in cars and sitting down for, well, probably a lifetime.  
      Or, at least until he woke up tomorrow, whichever came first.  
      _"Attention passengers, this is your captain speaking. The ferry will be docking in ten minutes at Whitehall Terminal; repeat, the ferry will be docking in ten minutes."_  
      Shit, already? Vinny looked at his watch to find that fifteen minutes had indeed already passed of him just standing at the bow of the boat staring into the water and the lights of the city. He really needed to learn to pay attention to his surroundings. Shaking his head to clear it of all the thoughts clogging his brain, he reached into his back pocket for his phone so he could check Twitter for the remaining few minutes he had left of his ride.  
      Empty. Heart leaping in his chest, he patted around the rest of the pockets in his jeans and the two of his coat to find that they were empty, as well, except for his house key and wallet. _"Fuck,"_ He cursed aloud, smacking his hand down onto the guardrail—his phone was still in his bag at home. No wonder it'd felt like he was forgetting something when he'd left his apartment! "Great, Vinny, _now_ what're you gonna do if you get mugged?" He said to himself, letting his weight rest on his hands gripping the rail. Looks like he'd just have to find a way to entertain himself until he was tired enough to head home, which shouldn't be hard considering he was somehow able to time travel by getting lost in his own head; looking up, he found that mainland had grown much closer than the last time he'd noticed.  
      As if on cue, the intercom crackled to signal an incoming announcement. _"Attention passengers, the ferry will be docking in five minutes. Again, the ferry will be docking in five minutes at Whitehall Terminal in Lower Manhattan. Please have your belongings ready upon docking; you will feel a slight bump when we do so, don't be alarmed, it's perfectly normal. Thank you for riding the Staten Island Ferry, and have a wonderful night."_  
      Guess he should probably get going to the gates so he doesn't get trampled when they arrive.

      Since he didn't have his phone, he couldn't order an Uber to take him to New York, which meant that he'd have to take... the subway.  
      Bowling Green Station was a few minutes walk from the terminal, he knew, so he went there and bought a ticket for the next train, which ended up being 241ST St-WAKEFIELD bound on the 5—right into the city.  
      Even close to midnight the subway was still fairly busy, forcing Vinny to stand near the doors death-gripping one of the overhead straps just to keep from being shoved up against some random stranger. God, he could just feel himself getting sick with a new strain of flu only found in New York City subway lines. He really wished he had his phone...  
      The next stop came quickly, a majority of the people around him getting off with only a few boarding. All of them looked like the walking dead: dark circles under their eyes, disheveled uniforms, hair falling out of styles and clips, many of them falling asleep with their phones in their hands. Night shifters. Vinny felt for them—after all, he'd been one of them. Granted, he was a night owl anyway, but back in college when he had to work and study and keep his dorm house liveable whilst also making his first YouTube videos, it'd been hard to live on the little sleep he got. There'd been times where he'd missed his stop on the subway because he'd fallen asleep heading home from work on nights that his roommates couldn't pick him up and got home late. It sucked.  
      Pretty soon, he was the last person on the train as it slowly rolled into the station and his stop. The landing was quiet and empty, save for a girl playing a worn guitar for tips, a couple homeless people sleeping on benches, and two people dressed as waiters talking to each other as they waited for their train. Vinny shuffled up the stairs to the street above, the sight, sound, and smell bombarding his senses all at once, instantaneously making his brain go into overdrive—city energy really was contagious, just like most diseases. He hated the way it made him feel, but if there was anything that was going to make him tired, it was New York City.  
      Picking a random direction, he began to walk.

      He hadn't been walking for long before his bladder told him that he needed to pee. Looking around, he found himself to be in the tourist district, aka hotels and fancy restaurants galore, which meant no bathrooms unless he wanted to pay for the piss he sent down the drain. Great.  
      Just then, he spotted two large golden words adorning a building and sighed with relief— _Paramount Hotel._ Their restaurant had a bar and public bathrooms, so if he could just slip in and pretend to be a patron, then maybe...  
      Spotting a large group of people heading from the hotel to the restaurant, he fell into step beside them and followed them into the establishment, doing his best to act like he belonged there by laughing with the group, which they were all too engrossed in their conversation to notice. Once the group reached the host and told them their reservation, he excused himself to the bathroom and took off, leaving their confused looks behind in favour of the sweet relief of cold, white porcelain.  
      It was empty and expensive inside the men's room, the only sound coming from the in-ceiling speakers that were playing the same music from outside at a much lower volume. Although he only needed to pee, he slipped into a stall and locked the door behind him, proceeding to do his business rather quietly.  
      When he came out of the stall and turned the corner towards the sinks, he saw a rather short... person? with white hair standing in front of the sink closest to the door, hands gripping the sides of it with their sagging, brown eyes wide and staring at their reflection in the mirror; Vinny assumed that they were a guy because they were in the men's room, but he honestly really couldn't be sure. They wore all black, including a black cloth facemask that obscured the entire bottom half of their face; their black, loose hoodie came down to almost mid-thigh and was worn with black distressed skinny jeans and shiny black boots, the whole outfit contrasting with their rather pale skin and their, as previously stated, white hair, which was styled down and had obvious signs of damage from the process that'd created such a colour. From what Vinny could tell, they were Asian, but what kind he didn't have the knowledge to guess. Maybe Japanese?  
      The person pulled their face mask down and sniffed, appearing to not have noticed his presence as they turned the faucet on and gathered a bit of water in their cupped hands to splash on their face; without the mask, it was more obvious that they couldn't've been no older than 20. Since their sleeves were so long, they got wet from the running water, causing them to curse in a language Vinny didn't recognize and shake them off, turning to their right to face the hand dryers. They waved their hand under it to turn it on, but nothing happened. Again they tried, this time over the sensor, again receiving no result. They hit the machine over and over, angry, foreign words slipping from their pink mouth.  
      It didn't take long for Vinny to step in and get the obviously upset person's attention by saying gently, "Hey, hey, it's ok,"  
      The person jumped at the sound of his voice and stumbled backwards against the sinks, a hand yanking their mask back up onto their face. Vinny held up his hands to show he meant no harm, then said, "It works like this, see?" And waved his hand in front of the machine, moreso over the nozzle as opposed to the sensor or under it. It whirred to life, blowing hot air straight down.  
      He looked to the person for a reaction, smiling a little to try and be friendly. They were still for a second, but then they slowly stepped towards the dryer, sticking their wet sleeves under the blast to dry them. After a quiet pause, Vinny heard their soft, somewhat uncharacteristically deep voice say, in an accented inflection that was kind of muffled by the mask, "Thank you,"  
      "You're welcome."  
      A beat, Vinny finding himself rather intrigued by this stranger for a reason he couldn't really place. "What's your name?"  
      The person flitted their dark eyes up to him for second before looking back down, their undereye circles more obvious now that Vinny was closer. His previous assumption that the person was only 20 seemed less likely now, but he still couldn't tell what gender they were—not that it mattered really. "My... name?" They asked, seemingly unsure of themselves. It was obvious that English wasn't their first language, but Vinny didn't fault them for that. "... Yoongi."  
      "Yoongi?" Vinny asked—it sounded barbaric from his tongue.  
      Yoongi nodded, lowering their arms back to their sides, now looking up at him, although out of the corner of their eyes. Holding out his hand, Vinny said, "Nice to meet you, Yoongi, I'm Vinny."  
      They shook hands; Yoongi's were cold and somewhat veiny, showing obvious signs of use. He wondered what they did to get them to look like that. "What brings you to New York, Yoongi? Just travelling?"  
      Yoongi looked around and shifted their weight—right, not a big English speaker. Damn, Vinny wished he had his phone... Making a motion with his hands, he asked, "Phone? Do you have a phone I can use?"  
      A pause, then Yoongi pulled their cell out of their back pocket, waving it a bit. "Phone?"  
      Vinny nodded, then making a mouth with his hand and saying, "I'll use it to translate,"  
      Yoongi furrowed their brows, but unlocked it and gave it to him. It was a nice iPhone, barely a scratch on it, and had a picture of a cartoon bear on the case, a character Vinny didn't recognize. Anyway, he pulled up Google Translate—wasn't hard to do even though everything was in a different language—and selected the voice option, expanding the list of available languages and pointing to them on the screen. "Which one do you speak, the language?" He asked.  
      Yoongi scrolled down to Korean and selected it. "I... not speak English very well, but I know... some." They told him, pulling their mask down under their chin.  
      "I just think this'll be easier," Vinny said into their phone, listening as the translator relayed his message to Yoongi, who huffed a slight laugh and spoke into the phone.  
      "It is not perfect but it is easier."  
      Yeah, Vinny knew he probably sounded like an idiot, but if it meant that Yoongi could communicate with him then it was fine for now. "Why do you want to talk to me, Vinny?" Translation-Yoongi asked, directing Vinny's attention from his thoughts to the person in front of him. They had their head cocked slightly to the side and their arms were crossed, their posture overall relaxed but still closed-off, which Vinny thought was warranted in the strange situation they found themselves in.  
      As for the question, he thought on it a moment—why _did_ he want to talk to them? They were complete and utter strangers, having met in a bathroom in a fancy restaurant that Vinny had snuck into, whereupon Yoongi hadn't been able to get the hand dryers to work and promptly beat the hell out of it. Was it that? No, Vinny had seen strangers do weirder things in bathrooms before. He flicked his eyes to Yoongi's and raised a brow as he observed them, no weight or meaning behind their eye contact; they felt kindred, like a shared life experience, or past life. It was haunting, almost. "It's..." He began, trying to find a way to describe what he felt in a way that wasn't weird. "You just seem familiar, like I know you from somewhere a long time ago."  
      Judging by Yoongi's expression, they were a little freaked: brows quirked, mouth pulled up, body leaning away from him. Nervously scratching his beard, Vinny continued, "I know this sounds fuckin' weird, and you don't know me, but I'd like to at least talk with you some. Maybe get a drink at the bar? My treat,"  
      "You do not need to pay, I have money." Yoongi said.  
      "So it's a yes, then?"  
      Yoongi chuckled and rubbed the back of their neck, seeming to study Vinny with their hooded eyes too dark to read. "I have nothing better to do, so I suppose... yes."  
      A shadow of a smile cracked Vinny's face, his right arm waving Yoongi towards the door. "After you,"  
      Rolling their eyes but with a soft simper, Yoongi shuffled out of the bathroom with Vinny following close behind, the both of them making their way to the bar and onto bar stools. The bartender was in front of them almost instantaneously with a friendly smile and homey demeanor. "Good evening, what can I get for you two tonight?"  
      "Amaretto on the rocks, please," Vinny told him, then turned to Yoongi and translated, "What d'you want to drink?"  
      "Hm," Yoongi thought a second, then said, "Zin-zinfandel, please."  
      The bartender looked a little confused by the mode of communication, but regardless continued, "Brand?"  
      Vinny was about to translate it when Yoongi answered, "Any kind,"  
      "Alright, coming right up, you two."  
      Once he'd walked away, Vinny turned to Yoongi with an attentive expression, smiling gently and resting his left elbow on the counter. Yoongi was expressionless, but their body language was more open than the last time Vinny had taken notice, so he assumed that they were comfortable. "So, Yoongi, to repeat my earlier question: what brings you to New York? Or do you live here?"  
      It took Yoongi a second to respond, their eyebrows twitching; their arms were crossed on the counter and their head was tilted slightly, their hair falling to the side and revealing a strong eyebrow. They really were pretty. "I am here on business. I am a musician," They told Vinny, who raised his brows ever so slightly in surprise.  
      "Really? So am I, I have a band. Are you a singer or a writer or something?"  
      "Rapper, among other things," Yoongi grabbed their drink from the bartender, whom Vinny hadn't noticed was now in front of them and had slid them both their drinks. He thanked them, then turned his attention back to Yoongi, who continued, "I write and produce music, as well, and I play the piano."  
      Rap? That was... not at all what Vinny was expecting. So maybe they _were_ a guy? But, then again, female rappers existed. "I didn't expect you to be into that kind of music," He said, taking a sip of his drink.  
      Yoongi straightened in their stool to face him directly, holding their glass of wine in a very picturesque way. "Yeah? Why not?"  
      "Well..." Vinny played with his glass in his hand, twisting and tapping it on the counter. "You're very... soft and sweet-looking, and to be honest, with your outfit, I would've thought you more of a rock person."  
      Yoongi rolled their eyes with their mouth twitching, right hand bringing their glass up to their lips to drink more wine. "I hate that about myself. Without makeup, I look so feminine, but I am too lazy to put it on all the time. I suppose my choice in fashion does not help much, either."  
      So Yoongi was a boy. 'Huh. Alright,' Vinny thought. "I hate to say it, but I actually didn't know you were a boy until just now. Not that I care, really,"  
      Yoongi laughed lightly, a rather interesting sound that Vinny decided he didn't mind; he noticed, as he watched Yoongi giggle with a soft smile, that his grin was all gums and his eyes would disappear into his soft, rather pink cheeks, making them into little crescent moon shapes with slightly upturned edges. It was pretty cute, as much as Vinny didn't like using that word. "But I was using the boy's bathroom, what else would I be?" Yoongi said with laughter still in his voice, wine held to his mouth.  
      Now Vinny was chuckling a little whilst also taking a swig of his drink. "What, I don't like to stereotype!"  
      "Well, maybe you should sometimes."  
      They drank their alcoholic beverages in silence for a short while, Vinny's wandering mind being torn from looking up articles in his brain on how to talk to people to Yoongi, as he spoke to him by asking out loud in English, "Vinny... you said that you are... musician, yes? What music you make?"  
      His voice was slightly higher pitched when he spoke English. Vinny didn't mind it. "Uhm, rock music, mostly. I don't know what kind of music you like, but it's not for everyone."  
      "I like many kinds of music. Maybe you could show me?"  
      "Sure, only if you show me some of yours, too."  
      Yoongi made no expression here or there about the offer. "Deal,"  
      Vinny took the phone from the counter where he'd set it so Yoongi could use it to translate and opened up YouTube, coming to a stop when he remembered that the keyboard was in Korean. "Uhh..."  
      Yoongi took the phone from him and showed him how to change the keyboard from Korean to English via a little world button at the bottom left of the keyboard; thanking him, Vinny then typed in 'Red Vox Another Light album' into the search bar. It was the first option, and he selected it. "이리," ("Here,")  
      He turned his head at the sound of Yoongi speaking to find him holding out a wireless earbud, its pair already in his ear. "Thanks." He said, taking it and shoving it rather uncomfortably into his ear—he preferred headphones, personally.  
      Tapping the screen, Yoongi pressed play.

_Turn the page and start to write_  
_The world won't wait for procrastination_  
_You'll never bleed if you never fight_  
_But how much worth the pain is elation_  
_Part the sea and release the skies_  
_The future's brighter than you'll ever know_

      As much as Vinny hated hearing his own voice, it almost didn't register as he studied Yoongi's face for a reaction through the first couple songs, but the guy was frustratingly blank, merely closing his eyes as he listened. 'This must be what it's like talking to me,' He thought.

_I've been watching, I've been waiting, I've been ready, won't you tell me? Maybe?_  
_I've been watching, I've been waiting, I've been patient, won't you tell me? Maybe?_  
_Tell me?_

_Now I've been going it alone_  
_A broken heart is just the start of what it is that could go wrong_  
_The pride I fake hangs like a stone_  
_I want you to tell me_

      "이것은 매우 흥미 롭습니다... 흥미 롭습니다." ("This is very interesting ... interesting.") Yoongi said, motioning with his wine glass, which Vinny had just now noticed had been refilled. "당신의 목소리는 다르지만 악기를 지나치게 말할 수는 없습니다." ("Your voice is different, but you can not say too much about the instrument.")  
      God, Vinny wished he knew what he was saying, but it didn't really seem like Yoongi was speaking _to_ him, moreso making comments aloud.  
      He didn't make another one until Reno; Vinny didn't think they were gonna listen to the whole album, but he guessed that Yoongi was one of those people that had to listen to a whole album to decide whether they liked it or not.

_I woke real tired with the earth for a bed_  
_Can't remember nothing but the colors black and red_

_Well a little bit of fun never hurt no one_  
_Now I need shelter from the raging desert sun_

_Dragging my bones to the side of the road_  
_Pounding in my head so loud it could explode_

      "아 ~ 나는 이것을 가장 좋아한다. 음악, 기타, 당신은 이런 식으로 더 많은 노래를해야합니다. 정말 모든 것을 함께 제공합니다!" ("Oh ~ I like this the best. Music, guitar, you need more songs like this. It really comes with everything!") Yoongi said, flitting his eyes to Vinny's with a simper; he seemed the most excited about this one, if the fact that he was emoting and had an upturned inflection in his voice meant anything. To be honest with himself, it made Vinny feel... proud, and happy. Sure, he'd read positive comments about his music online before, but to have someone physically tell him—well, in some way or another—that they liked it, well... that was something else entirely.

_You can leave your heart at the door; you can waste all your time wanting more_  
_You can play a victim to a broken mirror_  
_You can sell yourself for a dime; step on anyone who borrows your time_  
_You can be a hero to your own reflection, you can fill your head with empty praise_  
_If you burn a picture to obtain the ashes, you resign to throw yourself away_

_There's another light..._

      And the album was over. Vinny opened his mouth to ask Yoongi what he thought of it, but before he could vibrate his vocal cords, Yoongi held up a hand and took his phone, doing something with it until he heard and saw him talk into it with a slight slur to his voice, then turn it to him as the robotic Google translator spoke to him. "I will not comment on it until you hear some of my music, that way we have a better understanding of each other. It is only fair,"  
      Yeah, that made sense. "I can live with that." Vinny responded.  
      By now, they'd both gone through a few glasses of their respective drinks, and Vinny was starting to feel pretty buzzed; it was something he hadn't felt in a while, actually, and it was pretty nice. Looking to Yoongi, he saw that his eyes were droopy, his fingers moved clumsily over his phone screen, and his pale cheeks were flushed—yep, he was also tipsy. Somewhere, in the back of Vinny's alcohol-riddled brain, a voice said: 'Hey, maybe you'll be able to score.'  
      'Shut up, he's like 10 years younger than you and also probably straight,' He thought back, furrowing his brows a little.  
      'Come on, like you haven't thought about it at least once since you two started talking. He's cute, he likes music, he's funny, and he seems pretty into you if you ask me.'  
      "Well, I didn't, so."  
      Yoongi looked up. "What?" He asked in English.  
      Fuck, he'd said that last part out loud. "Nothing, I'm just talking to myself."  
      Yoongi just shrugged and set his phone on the counter, motioning with his finger towards the screen repeatedly; Vinny took that as a sign that he needed to watch it, so he did, feeling Yoongi lean in close to him. The scent of fresh, expensive cologne, soft shampoo, and a hint of wine filled his nose, raising goosebumps all over his arms—damn, he smelled really good. Shit, now Vinny wished he'd showered before he'd left. _Idiot._  
      Loud snare drum and the sight of a flickering lightbulb snapped Vinny's attention back to the phone, raising his eyebrows at the fact that Yoongi's music had videos. He must make a lot of money in order to get those, damn.

_They call me new thang_  
_The recruit is here, to take over everything_

      Oh, there's English captions. That was helpful.

_I'm the guy who shoves his junior or senior_  
_Who copies from copiers_  
_Doesn't matter if I'm nasty or if I'm a wack or fack,_  
_I'm the guy that will carve history on the ground_  
_Always getting more light_  
_Among other hopeless rappers_  
_The raquet caused by the jealous hyungs_  
_Who are scared I'd take away their source of income with my fame_

      There was a lot of talk of fame in this song, but then again wasn't that like, part of rap music? This wasn't really Vinny's thing, but he did have to admit, the production quality, the music, the lyrics, it was all really, really good. Yoongi had talent, he couldn't deny. 

_I'm sorry I mean it I'm sorry ___  
_I'm sorry for taking away your source of income, boy_  
_I'm sorry I reject fury_  
_Your mom's going to be sad_  
_When you lose your only asset, health_

_____I'm sorry, you should change your job_  
_Your ability of making yourself look like a moron_  
_Is extraordinary so change your job, boy_  
_I'm sorry I mean it I'm sorry_  
_I'm sorry that your rapper sucks compared to me_

__"Jeez, you're really owning those other rappers, Yoongi," Vinny said with a slight laugh, smiling at Yoongi, who did the same in return.  
      He couldn't help but notice, also, how much makeup Yoongi was wearing in the video; foundation, eyeshadow, eyeliner, his brows were filled in, a shiny lipstick or whatever was put on his lips. That seemed to be normal for Korean males, and Vinny could've never imagined himself saying this about someone wearing makeup, but Yoongi looked... really hot. If he didn't have a crush on him before, he certainly did now. How could you not?  
      The next video began to play, and it was another music video, this time for a song called 'Give It To Me'. Vinny wasn't sure he liked the connotations of that. 

_____Take back whatever you've said before_  
_If you ask me how I've succeeded,_  
I don't really have an answer  
_But at least, I slept less and stayed active_  
_Compared to you all to grow up_  
_I'm still not sure about the secret to success_  
_But I think I know the secret to failure_  
_The secret is to play the fool just like you_  
_And keep blabbing your mouth_  
_But I wouldn't live like that even if I had to die_

      Good God Yoongi was really aggressive in his music. There was a meteor inside this unassuming package, something much deeper than what Vinny had previously thought. It intrigued him greatly, and in that moment, he knew he was finished. There was no way he was going to let Yoongi walk out of his life without talking to him again—he needed to know him more intimately. Wait, that sounded wrong. 

_____You guys keep going after each other's throats_  
_Yeah, right ass**** yeah,_  
_Yeah keep fighting_  
_I don't care if you keep_  
_Digging your own grave or wasting yourself_  
_So please continue living like that_

_____Don't touch me, don't even put your hand on me_  
_You might end up in a coffin_  
_If you keep fooling around sloppily_  
_One for the money and two for the show_  
_Fame flash light gi give it to me_

__Yoongi showed so much of himself in his music. So much raw energy and emotion poured out of every word and chord, it actually kind of scared him. Each time he made music, he gave it a piece of himself, a life almost, like he was bringing it and himself to life. Just from what he'd heard alone, it seemed like it was an intense, intimate process, and by God, Vinny wanted to know more about it. "나는 술 취한 것 같아..." ("I think I'm drunk...) He heard Yoongi slur, watching as he went to grab his phone, but couldn't grip it and dragged it off the counter and onto the floor. "Oh, shit... 그것을 떨어 뜨렸다..." ("Oh, shit... I dropped it...")  
      Vinny helped him from the bar stool to stand up and grab it by gently holding his shoulder, kind of laughing but also a little worried for his phone. "How many glasses did you have, man?"  
      "나는 기억이 안 난다," (I don't remember,")  
      "Let's get you to your room, uh... room key..." Vinny patted around Yoongi's pockets carefully, doing his best to make it obvious that he wasn't trying to assault him, but he felt significantly more drunk now that he was standing and it was.... a lot.  
      Yoongi, holding his head, pulled his room key—scratch that, card—out of the back of his phone case, shoving it into Vinny's hands. He was fiddling with his phone and almost dropped it again, so Vinny figured he'd better hold onto that, too. The screen was a little cracked, but other than that it was fine, and Vinny told Yoongi, "I'm gonna take—" A hiccup cut him off. Please, come on, he really was _not_ that drunk! "Take you up to your room, ok? I'm not trying anything, I promise,"  
      Yoongi motioned for the phone, but instead of giving it to him Vinny just held it up to his lips. "I get it, do not worry, Vinny, just help me upstairs."  
      Before they headed back into the hotel, Vinny slapped a hundred on the counter next to their empty glasses; he didn't know how much their tab was, but at this point it honestly didn't matter, he just wanted to go somewhere quiet and get Yoongi safe.  
      It was less busy outside and darker somehow when they stepped out of the restaurant, the fresh air alleviating his slight nausea and giving him a little more energy. With his arm around Yoongi's shoulders and his key card gripped tightly in his free hand, they staggered into the hotel lobby, Vinny waving his card at the receptionist when she opened her mouth to probably ask if he belonged here. At the elevators, Vinny selected the fifth floor, as the room number on the card read 537, and within seconds they were off. "Vinny... why did you... come here tonight?" Yoongi asked quietly, in near-perfect English.  
      When Vinny looked at him, he was slightly taken aback at the intensity in his brown eyes that were locked on his, one of his hands gripping the bottom of his jacket. He was speechless for a beat, all thought fleeing his mind in an instant. "Uhh... I... couldn't sleep, after I got home from my trip, so I went for a walk and needed to pee, and ended up in that bathroom."  
      "No, I mean, with me, taking me to my room. Are you hoping to get something out of it?" Now it was the translator talking for Yoongi.  
      For probably the first time in literal years, Vinny blushed, his eye contact diverting of its own accord. "Not really, I-I was just trying to help you, because you're drunk."  
      "It would have been better if you had said yes," Yoongi stood up straight, his gentle waiver a stark contrast to the hardness of his expression that Vinny couldn't decipher. "And I am not so drunk that I can not tell when someone is lying, and you, Vinny, are lying."  
      Before Vinny could even really comprehend what was happening, Yoongi had him up against the elevator wall, his soft, wine-flavoured lips pressed hard to his own slightly chapped ones. It was a little awkward due to their height difference, but Yoongi didn't seem to care, essentially climbing Vinny to get at his hair and neck, knocking the wind out of him; Vinny wasn't sure what to do, exactly, like yeah he wanted this, but at the same time, Yoongi was drunk.  
      'So are you, idiot, and he's consenting.'  
      Oh, right. Vinny really was a dumbfuck when he was drunk.  
      A hand fumbled over his zipper and his brain short-circuited. "W-wait, Yoongi—" He held Yoongi's hand and pulled it away from his pants, trying desperately to get his thoughts off of how horny he was now and to getting Yoongi not to whip his dick out in the elevator. "Wait 'til we're in your room."  
      "... My room?" Yoongi said in English.  
      "Yeah."  
      Just then, the elevator doors opened to the fifth floor and they stumbled out, Yoongi pulling Vinny with him to his knees on the carpeted floor, their lips meeting again in a bruising kiss, front teeth clacking. Vinny was getting far too excited from how rough they were being, but if the hard bulge in the front of Yoongi's pants was anything to go by, he was into it, too.  
      Cold fingers brushed the skin of his sides and gripped the bottom of his jacket and shirt, pulling it up his body to just under his arms; the chill, climate controlled air of the hotel cooled his heated skin and sent goosebumps all across his body, his lips breaking contact with Yoongi's to release a gentle gasp. "Y-Yoongi, where's your room?" He asked past their heated kisses.  
      "Down... down hall." Yoongi answered, returning to sucking on Vinny's neck and palming at his hard dick through his jeans. Vinny tried to concentrate on getting them up and out of public view, but good God it felt so good to have Yoongi touch him that all he could do was grip his upper arms and moan, his thighs trembling as Yoongi undid his pants and pulled his hot, leaking cock out of his boxer briefs and into the open air, his cold fingers like burning ice on the overheated skin, making his brain turn to mush. "내가 너를 만질까?" ("Can I touch you?") Yoongi asked, nipping his ear.  
      "I don't—" Vinny tried, but Yoongi squeezing his dick and biting him harder told him that wasn't the right response to that question. He tried again, biting his lip at the feeling of his increased arousal making his dick drip more pre-cum. "Y-yes?"  
      A hard, hot lick up his neck, accompanied with slow strokes to his cock, Yoongi grazing his nails across it on every other stroke. _"We do it here,"_ Yoongi whispered into his ear, his breath tickling his skin in a strangely arousing way.  
      Although Vinny didn't mind having sex in a public place, the carpet was really itchy and the floor was uncomfortable; however, he knew that Yoongi wasn't going to change his mind about it, so he just said, "Okay."  
      "Good boy."  
      _Holy shit_ that went straight to his dick, Vinny unintentionally letting out a weak moan and thrusting into Yoongi's hand, his nails digging into the flesh of his arms.  
      Somewhat abruptly, all contact pulled away and Vinny was face to face with Yoongi once again, his face flushed, pupils blown wide, hair messy, shirt skewed to one side and mouth hanging slightly open with kiss-swollen lips; he looked extremely hot, and if drunk Vinny had to chose just one image to be implanted in his mind forever, it'd be this, right here. Yoongi licked his lips and took Vinny's hand to place it over his crotch, his half-lidded eyes fluttering closed upon contact—the sound he let out was erotic. "Vinny..." He whimpered, sliding both of Vinny's hands up his thin shirt, "나를 만지십시오..." ("Touch me...")  
      It was obvious what he wanted, and Vinny was more than happy to give it to him.  
      Clothes came off and became a makeshift mat for Yoongi to lay on, with Vinny's jacket as the pillow. Vinny laid claim to much of Yoongi's skin with hickeys and bites, suckling on his neck, jaw, and collarbones to get the loudest reaction whilst simultaneously pumping his cock, relishing in the sweet sounds Yoongi made that echoed through the empty hallway. "그것은 너무 좋아, 비니, 아 ~" ("It's so good, Vinny, ah ~") He mewled, tossing his head back. "제발 내게 씨발..." ("Please fuck me...")  
      Yoongi wrapped his legs around Vinny's waist and pulled him down against his crotch, Vinny's dick sliding between his asscheeks and up against his hole, which made him moan loudly. "씨발 날, 씨발 날," ("Fuck me, fuck me,")  
      Ok, Vinny was starting to get the hint. "We need lube, Yoongi."  
      "What? Lube?"  
      "Yeah,"  
      "Pants,"  
      Vinny patted around Yoongi's pants and found only his wallet, opening it to find a packet of lube sticking out of one of the coin pockets. Little weird, but Vinny was too inebriated to really wonder about it. Tearing it open, he slathered a bit onto his fingers and slid two of them inside of Yoongi, shivering at the way his hole squeezed and wrapped around them, the heat making him pant. "More, more, _please,"_ Yoongi moaned, bucking onto his fingers in slow, languid motions.  
      "I need to stretch you, I don't wanna hurt you."  
      Vinny slid in another finger far more easily than he should've been able to—okay, maybe he didn't need to prep him. Taking up the lube packet, Vinny rubbed the rest over his dick, forcing himself to stop stroking and instead push into Yoongi slowly, groaning with every inch gained, his whole body trembling from how fucking _good_ he felt around him. "Sh-shit..."  
      "오 하느님, 오 하느님, 오 하느님!" ("Oh God, oh God, oh God!")  
      Yoongi arched his back and dragged his nails down Vinny's sides, the angle affording Vinny the ability to go deeper, his dick curving perfectly into—  
      _"Ahh!_ 씨발, 씨발! 세상에!" ("Ahh! Fuck, fuck! Oh my God!") Yoongi cried, his heels bruising the flesh of Vinny's lower back with how hard he was pressing. "부디..." ("Please...")  
      Vinny curled into Yoongi and began to snap his hips directly into his prostate in slow, hard thrusts, his rumbling groans and keens being muffled by Yoongi's neck. God, every touch and caress, every slight contact against his skin was overwhelming, driving him into a state where the only thing he could hear, feel, smell, taste, see, the only thing he knew, was Yoongi. Fire burned up his spine and across his lower abdomen, his balls squeezing and twitching from how close to his orgasm he was even though they'd just barely started. He whimpered and held Yoongi close, hot mouth open and dragging over the surface of his shoulder and neck, biting down and making Yoongi moan in such a way that Vinny nearly came right then and there. "나는 곧 올 것이다," ("I'm going to come,") Yoongi said in a desperate voice, his whole body shaking and tense. "V-Vinny, I—"  
      And with a low groan of his name, Vinny heard and felt Yoongi come, his warm cum shooting onto both of their chests, a little bit of it getting in his beard; the muscles of Yoongi's ass clenched around Vinny's cock, and that, combined with the gorgeous, fucked-out countenance upon Yoongi's face, was more than enough to send Vinny over the edge. His eyes rolled back into his head and his body shivered as he pumped hot, liquid warmth deep inside him, his arms finally giving out.  
      "We should..." Yoongi began in English, sliding a hand over the scratches on Vinny's back, making them sting. "My room..."  
      "Right, right," Vinny said, the reminder that they were in the middle of a hallway naked snapping him out of his post-orgasmic daze. Standing on his wobbly legs, he helped Yoongi up and grabbed their clothes, managing to slip on his underwear and shirt and help Yoongi into his own before wrapping his arm around his waist, the two of them shuffling down the hall towards Yoongi's room. He swiped the card and opened the door, the two of them silently entering as Yoongi said, "Be quiet, I have a... room partner."  
      "Is that why you didn't want to have sex in your room?"  
      "나는 네가 한 말을 추측하고 '예'라고 대답 할 것이다." ("I will guess at what you said and answer 'yes'.")  
      Vinny took that as a yes.  
      Yoongi locked the door and tossed his clothes onto the chair next to one of the beds; in the other one, the one on the right, someone was passed out asleep, the duvet only covering their legs and nothing else. They were wearing shorts and a white T-shirt, and their dark hair was a mess against the light-coloured pillow. When they came in, they shifted and grumbled, "윤기형? 지금 몇 시지..?" ("Yoongi? What time is it...?")  
      "이른. 돌아가 잠이나 자, 호석." ("Yes. Go back to sleep, Hobi.") Yoongi replied, sitting on his bed. Vinny set his clothes down, as well, and sat beside him.  
      The person, whose name Vinny heard as Hosock or Hoseok or something, rolled over, Vinny tensing in anticipation of being seen—however, Hoseok didn't seem to notice him. "그럼 왜 깨어 있니?" ("So why are you awake?")  
      Yoongi snorted. "귀하의 비즈니스 중 아무 것도," ("None of your business,")  
      Hoseok laughed, his voice croaky from sleep. "잘자, 형." ("Goodnight, Yoongi.")  
      "잘자, 기대." (Goodnight, Hoseok.")  
      After a long pause, gentle snoring could be heard once again. "Did you want me to sleep here?" Vinny asked softly.  
      "Do... you mind?" Yoongi said in response. Vinny felt his hand gently thread through the hair on the back of his head, dragging his nails along his scalp.  
      "No. I was kind of hoping we'd sleep together."  
      No response from Yoongi, just eye contact and the hand in his hair, a gentle tug leading him onto the bed lying down, Yoongi straddling his waist and then laying on top of him. "Yoongi, what—"  
      "Shh," Yoongi kissed him briefly before turning his attention to his jaw and neck, Vinny huffing out a moan and grabbing onto the back of his shirt.  
      "Yoongi... I can't get hard again, you should know that." He said, voice trembling just slightly.  
      "그게 내가하려는 일이 아니야." ("That's not what I want to do.")  
      Yoongi snuggling into the crook of his neck and gripping his shirt had Vinny's heart skipping in his chest, his breathing shuddering. "We can sleep like this," He murmured.  
      "Mm."  
      The warmth of Yoongi on top of him was more comforting than any blanket, and within minutes, he and Yoongi were both asleep. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> there's a reason yoongis acting like this I promise


	2. The Photoshoot

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Vinny meets everyone else, and discovers something about Yoongi he'd have preferred to keep hidden.

      Vinny woke up later that morning to the feeling of being watched; rolling over and sitting up, he found himself alone in the bed, but sitting on the one beside him was... what was his name... Hoseok, the guy from last night.  
      Wait. Where was Yoongi?  
      "So you are the guy from last night," Hoseok said in accented English, his bright expression making Vinny feel a little less awkward. "Yoongi-hyung is... not subtle."  
      "Yeah..." Vinny mumbled, running a hand through his hair to untangle it. "I'm Vinny,"  
      "Hoseok, 하지만 날 호비라고 불러도 돼!" ("Hoseok, But you can call me Hobi!")  
      Hoseok held out his hand to shake, which Vinny did, Hoseok smiling and taking out his phone, fiddling with it for a second before putting it to his ear, Vinny hearing the muffled ringing of a phone. After a brief moment, he began talking into it, speaking only for like thirty seconds before hanging up. "Joonie-ah is coming, he is translator," Hoseok told him.  
      "Okay," Vinny said. This was a little weird... but at least he was friendly, though still strangely unperturbed by the fact that his roommate had brought a strange guy back to their hotel room.  
      "Change clothes?" Hoseok questioned, motioning to the chair that had his clothes on it—right, he was in his undies. Vinny looked down and noticed that he was shirtless, even though he explicitly remembered putting his shirt on last night. So where...  
      Turning up his mouth, he got up and shuffled over to his clothes, wincing at the slight pang of the scratches on his back that were still raw; as he pulled his pants on, he noticed Hoseok staring very intently at his back, his expression faltering. Was it the scratches? Why would he be upset abut that?  
      A knock on Hoseok and Yoongi's door, a voice on the other side saying something Vinny couldn't understand but apparently Hoseok did, as he got up and walked to the door, unlocking and opening it. "이봐, 호비. 여기있는 유일한 사람입니까?" ("Hey, Hobi. Are you the only one here?") A deep voice asked—that must be Joonie.  
      "Yeah. Yoongi-hyung is not here."  
      Joonie clicked his tongue, and then Hoseok stepped back and allowed him into the room; he was tall, the same height as Vinny himself, with soft blond hair and a pleasant, rather flat face. He was lanky but had oddly thick thighs, and was wearing black skinny jeans, a long, flowy striped shirt, and white Converse. Jeez, they were all so attractive. "Hey man, what's up?" Joonie said to him with a smile, shaking his hand. "I'm Namjoon, nice to meet you." His accent was strange, very unlike the ones Vinny had heard from Yoongi and Hoseok.  
      In response, Vinny ducked his head, also trying to smile. "Vinny. Uhm, what's this all about?"  
      Namjoon's expression grew more serious. "You slept with Yoongi-hyung last night, didn't you?"  
      Vinny was too old to be embarrassed about hookups and merely said, "Yeah, and?"  
      "그가 윤기이 어디 있는지 아는지 물어보십시오." Hoseok said to Namjoon.  
      To Vinny, Namjoon translated. "He wants to know if you know where Yoongi-hyung is. He hasn't seen him today,"  
      "No, I don't. He wasn't here when I woke up, and I don't have his number, either."  
      Namjoon relayed the information to Hoseok, who didn't seem pleased at all with that information. "그는 전화를받지 않고 걱정하기 시작합니다. 우리는 1 시간 안에 화장을 떠나야합니다!"  
      Namjoon frowned. "다른 사람들도 그를 보지 못했습니까?"  
      Hoseok shook his head. "Shit." Namjoon cursed. Vinny wasn't sure what was going on, but it didn't seem good. "We can't find him, and no one else has seen him, either." Namjoon said.  
      "I wish I could help you, but I honestly don't know where he'd be. If it means anything, he took my shirt," Vinny told him, shrugging and running his fingers through his hair again.  
      Namjoon rubbed his hands over his face and sighed, his long fingers finding his hairline and scratching the area for a second. "This is really unlike him, both running off without telling anyone and having a one-night stand with a stranger in a different country."  
      Vinny could see that; the way Yoongi had been acting last night, from what he could remember, seemed... manic. Like his brain was everywhere at once. Maybe that'd been what had happened? Vinny didn't want to believe it, he... he really liked Yoongi, more than he probably should considering they'd only just met and had sex once. It was unlike him; he didn't catch feelings for people, that just wasn't his thing. But now here he was, really wanting to see Yoongi again and maybe even go on a date. God, when was the last time he'd went on a date with someone?  
      The doorknob jiggled slightly and then turned as the door was pushed open, who else but Yoongi stepping around it. Upon seeing the three of them standing there, he froze. "무슨 일이야?" ("What's up?") He asked, finally closing the door; he had a brown paper bag in his other hand, the scent of some kind of food wafting from it into Vinny's nose. Oh man was he hungry.  
      "그게 우리가 너에게 묻고 있어야하는거야!" ("That's what we want to ask you! ") Hoseok said, waving a hand at him. "우리는 아침 내내 걱정했습니다!" ("We have been worried all morning!")  
      "나는 음식을 사러 나갔다. 그것은 큰 문제가 아닙니다." ("I went out to buy food. It's not a big deal.") Yoongi made a face, like they were weird for being so worked up.  
      "전화를받지 않았 잖아," ("You weren't answering your phone,") Namjoon cut in.  
      Pulling his phone out of his back pocket, Yoongi held it up and shrugged. "Died on my way there. I have not charged it since yesterday,"  
      "You could've at least told someone you were leaving." Namjoon said.  
      "No one was awake,"  
      Walking past them, Yoongi slipped his jacket off to reveal that he was wearing Vinny's shirt, though it was a bit too big; he dropped his coat on the chair and held up the bag to Vinny, smiling a little. "Hungry?"  
      Well, that was it for Vinny; in that second, with just a singular word and a simple, sweet act, he fell in love, staring into Yoongi's cute eyes. He was rendered almost speechless, but managed to get a grip and said, "U-uh, yeah, I am. Thanks, Yoongi,"  
      "I took... your shirt, I hope you do not mind."  
      "No, not at all. It's yours."  
      Yoongi rubbed his free hand over Vinny's upper arm over his jacket. Vinny watched him, noticing that his eyes weren't on his face, but his chest, glued to the exposed skin there as he wasn't wearing a shirt underneath it. "너희들은 우리를 내버려 둘 수 있니? 메이크업에서 나중에 너와 만날거야." ("Can you leave us alone? I'll meet you later for the photoshoot.") Yoongi said.  
      "Yoongi-hyung—"  
      "Later, Namjoon and Hoseok."  
      Silence, and then the two men left, leaving Vinny and Yoongi alone. Almost as soon as the door latched shut, Yoongi pushed Vinny's jacket off his shoulders slowly, exposing his torso and shoulders but keeping his arms covered. "I like... your chest. Hairy,"  
      Yoongi brushed his fingers over Vinny's nipples, making his leg jerk and lips part to release a weak moan. "Yoongi, as... much as I like this, I need to eat something." He breathed, clenching and unclenching his fists.  
      "Hm?" Yoongi cocked his head to the side.  
      "I'm hungry,"  
      Realization dawned on his face and he took up the doggy bag, reaching into it and taking out two large takeout boxes, setting them on the side table along with a little wax bag of egg rolls and chopsticks. Vinny didn't know what it was, but he was honestly too hungry to care. He ripped open the box and picked up his chopsticks, digging them into the... what is this? Empress chicken? Regardless, he shovelled it into his mouth, taking a lump of the white rice and shoving that in his mouth, too.  
      It wasn't until a couple minutes and a few more gigantic mouthfuls of food later that he noticed Yoongi staring at him, his own utensils still intact. "What?" Vinny questioned once he'd finished chewing and swallowing his food.  
      Yoongi shrugged, finally taking apart his chopsticks and using them to grab an egg roll and eat it; Vinny quirked a brow, but couldn't decipher what Yoongi was thinking, only being able to feel the comfortable aura emanating from him. There was something _more,_ also, but what, Vinny didn't know. "Shower?" Yoongi asked, making Vinny snap his head from his food to him.  
      "Huh?"  
      "Shower after?"  
      Oh. Now that he thought about it, yeah, Vinny could go for a shower. "Sure, that sounds pretty good."

      Vinny eventually had his fill and was more than ready to take a nice shower and change his nasty clothes; Yoongi seemed far too excited to help him out of his clothes, kissing each bit of skin that was exposed, riling him up just enough to the point that the kisses were unbearable. However, Yoongi didn't seem all that horny, instead weirdly... romantic? That's what it felt like. He wasn't quite sure what to make of it; however, since Yoongi's phone was dead and he didn't have his own, there was no real proper way for them to communicate, so he just kind of had to roll with it.  
      They headed into the bathroom and into the walk-in shower, Yoongi turning the water on and then taking Vinny's hand to place it on the knob, turning to him with a gentle simper. "You can do it," He told him.  
      "Oh, ok." Vinny murmured. He adjusted it to his liking, smiling softly at the feeling of Yoongi lathering soap onto his back and over his shoulders, kissing the back of his neck. This was... very romantic, and it had Vinny's heart skipping beats. "Feels nice, Yoongi," He said softly.  
      "Mm."  
      Once his back was clean, he turned around so Yoongi could get his front, watching with his heart racing more the further down his body Yoongi got, but he didn't touch his dick, merely pausing to clean around and under his balls. Vinny was only a little disappointed. "Head." Yoongi said while tugging on his hair. Vinny complied, lowering his head so that Yoongi could wash his hair. After shampooing, he put something else in there—conditioner? It smelled nice, anyway. Vinny had never been too attentive to his hair, but he didn't mind smelling or looking nice, so he let Yoongi do whatever.  
      After it was all in, Vinny stood up straight and smiled a little—when was the last time he'd smiled this much? His face wasn't used to it, but it felt nice; the emptiness inside of him didn't feel as empty now. "네 차례 야, 애인." ("Your turn, lover.") Yoongi said, turning around and handing him the body wash from behind his back.  
      "Oh, uh, ok."  
      Vinny washed him off, marvelling at how perfect his skin was—barely a mole or pimple (besides the scratches and bit marks, of course). On his face, though, he had a light dusting of freckles over his nose and cheeks. They were really cute and lent even more to his sweet, innocent appearance. "You really are pretty," He commented aloud, Yoongi giggling and half-heartedly pushing him away.  
      "닥쳐..." ("Shut up...")  
      Last was the hair; Vinny did his best to copy what Yoongi had done, washing it twice and then slathering it in conditioner. Yoongi stepped away from him once that was done, Vinny watching him take up a razor and the fogless mirror from the indent in the wall and shave his face even though Vinny hadn't seen any stubble. He felt his beard and decided it could go another day without a trim and began to rinse out his hair. "오이, 별로." ("Oi, not too much.") Yoongi said, "Not too much water,"  
      Vinny stopped rinsing, though there was still conditioner left. Was it supposed to be like that?  
      Pretty soon, Yoongi was done and they got out, drying off and brushing their hair. When he went to get dressed, Vinny realized—"I don't have any other clothes."  
      "뭐라고?" ("What?") Yoongi asked, pausing in slathering some kind of sheer cream over his face to look at him.  
      "No clothes," Vinny shook his dirty clothes. "Dirty."  
      "Oh,"  
      Yoongi finished with his face before he went out to the room and slipped some clothes on, opening the door and holding up a finger, disappearing out into the hall. Vinny stood there, naked and kinda cold, for what felt like forever until Yoongi came back with a bundle of clothes under his arm and a smile. "Here, these might fit."  
      Vinny took apart the bundle to find a pair of skinny jeans, boxer briefs, a shirt, and a... choker? Huh? He wasn't really an accessories person, but hey, he never used to put conditioner in his hair, either, so there was a first time for everything. Shrugging, he put the rather tight underwear on, finding that they fit around his hips but nowhere else.  
      Once he'd put the pants on, he found out why— _they were so incredibly tight on his butt._ Good God, people wear these kinds of pants in real life? But actually, he looked... pretty good in them. He picked up the plain white shirt and pulled it down over his head, and surprisingly, it was the only thing that wasn't tight, rather just form-fitting. The choker wasn't strangling him, either.  
      He looked in the mirror again and felt a pang of self-loathing in his gut; he looked stupid, like come on dude, you're almost thirty-five. In what world could he ever rock this look?  
      "Handsome!"  
      Yoongi appeared in the mirror beside him, smiling and holding his coat and shoes, his now blue eyes gleaming bright and looking him up and down. "Suits you well, 자기야," (Honey)  
      Even though Vinny still felt kind of weird about the outfit, he grinned anyway and tucked his hair behind his ear like a bashful schoolgirl at the compliment. "Thanks, Yoongi..."  
      Still smiling, Yoongi gave him his coat and shoes and then a kiss on the cheek. "Come, I have something for you."  
      Vinny put on his shoes and coat and shoved his wallet and keys into his pocket, turning around as he put his other hand into his other pocket to face Yoongi and the gift he had for him.  
      It was a lanyard with a white ID hooked to the bottom, the text reading "PRESS PASS" in big black letters, the back saying presumably the same thing but in Korean. "So you can be with me today while we are at the photoshoot. You can act like a journalist, right?" Said Translation-Yoongi—his phone was done charging, the cord in the hand that was holding the device out to him. "I asked my manager if you could shadow and interview us today for your magazine or whatever. I put in a good word for you, so do not fuck it up!"  
      Vinny could act like a journalist, after all he did interviews at TMG and NYCC every year. Yeah, he could make it work, but...  
      Actually, no, he didn't have anything to do today. No streaming until 7 and the album was already out, so he was free. "I'll see what I can do. I'm gonna need a phone, though."  
      Yoongi tucked his phone into his hand and clasped it. "There."  
      A knock at the door, followed by three men barging through it loud as anything. "형! 갈 시간이야, 어서!" ("Hyung! Time to go, come on!") Shouted the one in the middle; he had black hair parted to the side, revealing a very pretty face with strong features. The one on the left was taller than the other two and had sleek brown hair cut straight across his forehead that he had to flick off of one eye in order to see—he was really beautiful. It was actually kind of intimidating. Lastly, the shortest one, had blond hair that was also cut straight, but his had more layers; he was cute moreso, his small hands coming up to cover his cheeks when he saw him and Yoongi standing together. Vinny wasn't quite sure what to make of it all. "Is this him? The magazine guy?" Asked the tall one in near-perfect English, though he had a really different accent. His voice was very deep and it startled Vinny for a split second.  
      "너희들 뭐하고있어, 모두 아늑 해?" ("What are you guys doing, all cozy?") The middle one said with a smirk, his nose scrunching up like a bunny.  
      The short one cackled and covered their mouth with their sleeve, eying him up and down, making Vinny raise a brow. "그는 아주 잘 생겼어..." ("He is very handsome...")  
      "오이," ("Oi,") Yoongi crossed his arms, "나가서, 나가면 내가 떠날거야." ("Get out, I'll leave soon.")  
      "What about him?" The tall one motioned to Vinny.  
      Vinny cut in here. "I'll come with you guys, if that's ok. I haven't gotten to talk with you all yet."  
      He looked to Yoongi and nodded, smiling at him nodding in return before he headed towards the other musicians; he was beginning to assume that Yoongi was not a solo performer. Maybe they were all a group? That was a popular thing in Korea right? "What is your name, Mr. Magazine?" Asked the pretty black-haired one, his big doe eyes watching him.  
      "Vinny." Vinny answered, opening up the recording app on Yoongi's phone. He pressed record, then said, "Why don't you all tell me your names and ages from youngest to oldest?"  
      The blond one looked to the tall one with furrowed brows, presumably confused as to what he said; the tall one translated, and then the pretty one said, "My name is Jeongguk Jeon, I am 20 years old, and I am the lead vocalist."  
      Ok, so band. Got it. "My name is Taehyung Kim, I'm 22 years old, and I am a vocalist." Said the tall one, his cat-like eyes looking into Vinny's when he spoke, sending rather strange chills up and down his spine. Jeez, what the hell kind of entity was he?  
      "내 이름은... Uhm... My, name is, Jimin Park, I am 22 years old, and I am a singer."  
      It was obvious that Jimin's English was the weakest—Vinny took note of that so he could translate for him easier. "Ok, cool. So, Taehyung, how do you like being in New York? Been to any tourist hot spots yet?"  
      Taehyung looked off to the side and furrowed his brows, his mouth moving to sound out words. After a second, he said, "I like it a lot. Very very busy, and I like seeing my face in Times Cube,"  
      "Times Square you mean?"  
      "Yes."  
      "Why was your face in Times Square? Were you promoting something?"  
      "It was my birthday,"  
      "Oh, happy birthday, Taehyung."  
      "Thank you!" Taehyung smiled and threw up a peace sign.  
      Before Vinny could say anything else, the hallway filled with people carrying cameras and bags, all but a few wearing face masks and dark clothes. One of them came up to him and pulled his face mask down, asking, "You are Vincent Lange, the journalist, right?"  
      "Uh, yeah. You are?" Vinny asked in return—how'd this guy know his last name?  
      "Minhyuk Park, one of their managers. I need you to sign some documents before you begin your interview. Normally, you would have signed these beforehand, but you joining us was rather sudden."  
      "Yeah, for me, too."  
      Vinny was handed the documents and a pen, to which he signed on the dotted lines; they were normal non-disclosure agreements stating he couldn't talk about what rooms they stayed in or where, what car they were driving, personal information, things of that nature. He handed them back, watching as Minhyuk looked them over briefly, then saying, "What's the name of your magazine?"  
      "Uhm... It's, more of a podcast and vlog than a magazine. Mostly audio and video."  
      "Okay, but we'll need to review it before you post anything, per the agreement."  
      "That sounds fine."  
      They shook hands just as someone yelled, "차가 2 분 후에 출발합니다! 네 물건 가져 가서 아래층으로 내려와!" ("The car leaves in two minutes! Take your things and go downstairs!")  
      Minhyuk turned around and disappeared into the hustle and bustle of the crew around him, Vinny finding himself in much the same situation as he was pushed and pulled towards the elevators, pressed up against the wall by half a dozen crew members and their bags. The ride down the elevator wasn't long, though, and before he knew it he was outside the hotel, standing by a large, black SUV with tinted windows. A brief moment later, Yoongi appeared at his side, followed by Namjoon, Hoseok, Taehyung, Jeongguk, Jimin, and another member he wasn't familiar with. "Seokjin, or just Jin," The other member, Seokjin, greeted with a dazzling smile—why were they all so attractive? "I am the oldest."  
      Once they were in the car—Vinny, Yoongi, and Hoseok in the middle, Taehyung and Jeongguk in the front, and Seokjin, Namjoon, and Jimin in the back with two managers in the front seat—Vinny began his "interview".  
      He had the members whose names, ages, and positions he hadn't gotten yet introduce themselves first; Seokjin, as previously stated, was the eldest at 26, while Yoongi was the second eldest at 25, and Namjoon and Hoseok third at 23 and 24 (Namjoon hadn't had his birthday yet, but they were the same age technically). Jin was almost six years younger than him and he wasn't quite sure how he felt about that. "Alright, I'm gonna be honest with you guys: I actually have no idea who you guys are, but I think that'll help with me staying unbiased and asking questions you all want asked. So," He turned to lean against the door so he could face everyone, phone held in his hand to rest on his knee. "Tell us all a little about yourselves, what you do, and why you're here."  
      Namjoon translated for everyone, Vinny seeing a few of them laugh, Yoongi included. "Why did you agree to interview us, then?" Seokjin asked via Namjoon translating.  
      Vinny shrugged. "I thought it'd be interesting to learn about music from other countries. After all, music and talent exists outside of Western cultures."  
      "Do you make music, Bini?" Jimin asked with no translation, leaning over the back of the seat to be closer to him—Yoongi almost glared at him, though Jimin didn't seem to notice.  
      Scratching the back of his head, Vinny answered, "Yeah, but this isn't really about me—"  
      "Tell us about it!"  
      "Jimin." Yoongi snapped, making the smile drop from Jimin's face and his shoulders tense. Everyone in the car looked at Yoongi, eyes wide—Yoongi kept his gaze on Jimin. "앉아. 너는 짜증나고있어." ("Stop it. You're being annoying.")  
      Judging by the hurt expression on Jimin's face, Yoongi had said something mean. "Yoongi, 너는 정말 무례 하구나! 그는 단지 친절하고있어!" ("You are so rude! He's just being nice!") Seokjin scolded. "그에게 사과하다!" (Apologize to him right now!")  
      Yoongi lowered his head. "미안, Jimin." ("Sorry, Jimin.")  
      Jimin didn't say anything, just turned his head and folded his legs to his chest, hugging them. Vinny felt a little uncomfortable...  
      Turning the recording off, he put Yoongi's phone away, saying quietly, "We'll do this later, I think."

      Where their caravan ended up was outside of a very prestigious-looking photography building, Vinny not even bothering to try and guess as to how much it cost just to step foot inside; they all filed in and up to the front desk, where the receptionist confirmed their appointment and pointed towards the elevators, telling them which floor they were on—number 5. Up they went, and almost immediately upon arrival at the fifth floor the members were whisked off to a makeup station, stylists swarming around them to get their hair, makeup, and outfits picked out. Vinny watched in awe at how quickly but precisely everyone was moving, not a single misstep happening as each person's makeup and hair was fixed up, outfits being put together and pushed into the hands of each person so they could get dressed. It actually kind of hurt Vinny's head to watch—was this their every day? Vinny didn't think he'd be able to handle all that, personally; hell, just being a mildly popular streamer was more than enough.  
      And what was with Yoongi's little outburst earlier? Jimin was just asking him about his music...  
      Wait. Had Yoongi been... jealous? Vinny looked over to him and found him staring at him, countenance soft. He waved a little, and Vinny waved back. Motion out of the corner of his eye drew his attention to Jimin, who was also waving at him with a little grin, his stylist motioning for him to keep still; when he glanced back to Yoongi, he was staring daggers at Jimin.  
      Yeah, that was probably it.  
      After about ten minutes, makeup was done and it was time for clothes. They went behind the folding dressing wall to change, leaving Vinny and the crew to set up and wait for them to finish.  
      Vinny took out Yoongi's phone, figuring he could at least put his number in there and text himself so that they could text each other; he really, really liked Yoongi, so much so that it kind of scared him, but judging from how Yoongi was acting, he felt the same way.  
      Just as he'd sent himself a text, a notification popped up at the top of the screen.  
      _Vinesauce: The Full Sauce just uploaded a video..._  
      Vinny's blood ran cold and his whole body froze, his eyes wide and locked onto the notification, everything going quiet around him; Yoongi... was subscribed to him? He'd known who he was this whole time and _didn't tell him?_  
      'Hold on, don't get ahead of yourself,' He thought, taking deep breaths in order to calm down, 'Maybe he subbed to you after you guys met, after looking you up.'  
      Fumbling on the keys, Vinny went to Yoongi's YouTube on the website instead of the app, organizing his subscriptions by time instead of alphabetically.  
      Instead of being first, he was near the middle.  
      Air escaped him in a heavy, noiseless sigh, all the muscles in his body waivering and almost making him collapse to the floor; Yoongi had lied to him. He'd known who he was, he'd watched his streams, he'd probably even fucking heard his music before, and the only reason he liked him so much and was being so nice was because he was a fan. A crazy, jealous fan that had tricked him into having sex with him and was now trying to get him to date him.  
      So... why was Vinny still so in love with him? His heart still skipped in his chest thinking of their shower together, of Yoongi calling him handsome, of the face he'd made when he came the last time they'd had sex, all of it. He could still smell his cologne on his skin and that alone was making him lightheaded. His heart wanted this, but his brain... his brain was telling him it was a bad idea; if people found out that he was dating a fan it could have immense repercussions, both for him and Yoongi. He would lose a sizeable portion of his fanbase and Yoongi would get unimaginable amounts of hate just for being with him, let alone being a fan. In general, it was a really bad idea.  
      But so what? Wasn't he allowed to be happy? Like, yeah, he was still mad at Yoongi for not telling him that he knew who he was—he'd had chats with fans at bars before, it wasn't weird for him—but regardless of that, he was head over heels for Yoongi, and he couldn't think of a time he'd felt like that for anyone, _ever._ For the first time since his last girlfriend almost eight years ago, he wanted to be in a relationship for more than just a night. It was new, and scary, and overwhelming beyond belief, and God Vinny wished he was home right now so he could think this over, but he was kind of stuck here, so he'd just have to deal.  
      Putting Yoongi's phone back into his pocket, he grabbed a chair from makeup, sat down, and began to think.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> hmm.......


	3. The Lunch

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> fancy lunch time, and a boy with a crush

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> sorry for the late update, got a second job n now i have no free time lol

     "Hey,"  
      Vinny looked up from spacing out thinking about Yoongi to the person talking to him, who turned out to be Hoseok. His normally bright face was rather serious, orange hair styled to fall in his face and his makeup dark; he was wearing a very expensive-looking white dress shirt with grey pinstripes tucked into black leather skinny jeans, his shoes as expensive and leather as the rest of him. His shirt was loose and only buttoned halfway, revealing a white tank top underneath. He looked really nice. "We... need to talk."  
      "Ok, sure." Vinny said, a little confused but willing to listen.  
      Hoseok grabbed a chair and set it beside him, sitting in it backwards and dropping his head to the side. "Do you have translator?"  
     Right, right. Vinny took Yoongi's phone out and pulled up Google Translate, selecting the voice option just like he'd done with Yoongi in what felt like an eternity ago. Hoseok pressed the button and began to speak. "I know that you and Yoongi-hyung like each other. I have never seen Yoongi act like this with anybody, so I know that, for him, it is very real. I..." He hesitated, chewing his bottom lip and bouncing his leg. "I love Yoongi a lot, I have for a very long time, but I guess my time to act is over now, so I only ask..." His lip quivered, but then he grinned wide, mouth in the shape of a heart. "That you take good care of him, okay? He is a beautiful person, and deserves to be able to be himself around those he loves!"  
      Oh Christ, was Vinny really being guilted into this? Not really, but he felt guilty anyway. "Of course, Hoseok, I'll do my best."  
     "Great!" Hoseok stood from his chair and threw up a peace sign. "See ya!"  
      And Vinny was alone again, but now with even more to think about. God dammit...  
      He did want Yoongi to be happy. Even though they'd just met, even though Yoongi had kept hidden the fact that he knew who he was, even though he was terrified of relationships and could barely imagine himself even going on a date, he wanted the best for the man he'd grown to love. And if that meant leaning Korean so they could communicate, then so be it.  
      There were still some things they needed to talk about, though. However, they'd have to wait, as, judging from the extensive array of outfits the stylists had lined up, they were gonna be here for a while. Sitting back in the chair, Vinny opened up the camera app and began recording some video.

      Surprisingly, the photoshoot only lasted a couple of hours, ending around noon; Vinny was still kinda tired, so he ended up nodding off a couple times while recording and taking pictures. However, the shaking of his shoulder by a rather small hand woke him before he could fall too deeply asleep. "피곤하고, 비니?" ("Are you tired, Vinny?") Asked someone who sounded like Jimin. Vinny cracked his heavy eyelids open to look up at the person, finding who else but Jimin to be smiling shyly and holding a can of soda out to him; he was wearing black skinny jeans, a red satin choker, a dark red, silky, flowy blouse, gold bracelets, and had his blond hair parted off his forehead to reveal the smoky eye makeup he wore. He looked very pretty, Vinny thought.  
      He took the offered soft drink, sitting up straighter. "Thanks, Jimin,"  
      Jimin plopped down onto the seat that Hoseok had left beside him and took out his phone, Vinny watching him pull up the translator. "So, Vinny, you said you make music, right?" He asked, dropping his head to the side to rest on his arms on the back of the chair.  
      "Yeah, rock music. It's probably not your thing." Vinny answered—he'd set his phone to record so he could have some material for the blog post he'd have to write later.  
     "Well I'll be the judge of that. Show me!"  
     Vinny shrugged but couldn't help but simper a little at his enthusiasm, using Jimin's phone to pull up his album on YouTube. "Which is favourite?" He asked, pointing to the tracklist on-screen.  
     "My favourite song?" Vinny asked in return, Jimin taking a second to nod in affirmation. "Hm... probably Another Light. I think I show my vocal range best there."  
     Jimin furrowed his brows—oh, right. He pointed to the first song and then pressed play on the video.  
     As the song played, Vinny watched him to see his reaction; Jimin bopped his head back and forth and mumbled along, swaying gently with the music and smiling gently. When he glanced over to Vinny and saw him staring at him, he squeaked a bit and turned red, quickly looking away. Vinny wasn't quite sure what he meant by that. "왜 나보고있어..?" He said with slight humour in his tone.  
      "Huh?"  
      Jimin switched from YouTube to the translator. "Why are you staring at me?"  
     "Oh. I wanted to see your reaction to my music, to check if you were enjoying it. Sorry, was I making you uncomfortable?"  
      "No, I was... just embarrassed. Would you not be if you had a handsome man looking at you?"  
      Now it was Vinny who was flustered. "I'm not, really, but thank you."  
     "Oh, do not say that! You are too!" Jimin reached out and settled his hand on Vinny's thigh, his other one brushing a few strands of hair out of his face. "I actually... wanted to know if you would like to go to dinner with me. T-to interview me, of course, unless you..."  
      Vinny was actually kind of speechless—was he serious? He knew him and Yoongi were involved, right?  
     Wait, no, he didn't. The only ones who did besides Yoongi himself were Namjoon and Hoseok. Shit. "I'm flattered, Jimin, but—"  
     "Vinny!"  
     Vinny and Jimin both looked up towards the source of the shout; it was Yoongi, fire in his eyes and his dark brows knitted together as he stalked over to where they sat, hands balled into fists at his sides. He stopped in front of them and crossed his arms over his chest, death rays shooting at Jimin. "나는 네가 그를 괴롭히는 것을 분명히했다고 생각했다," ("I thought I made it clear that you were bothering him,") He snapped, picking Jimin's hand up by the wrist and practically tossing it back at him.  
     Jimin looked hurt, rubbing his wrist and standing up. "내가 그와 이야기 할 때 왜 너는 싫어하니? 당신은 그를 소유하지 않습니다." ("Why do you hate it when I talk to him? You do not own him.")  
     "너와는 상관 없어." ("I just don't like it.")  
     "그게 나를 위해 충분하지 않아. 형, 어서. 왜 나 한테 그렇게 큰 의미 야?" ("That is not enough for me. Hyung, please. Why do you hate me so much?")  
     "나는 너에게 아무 것도 말할 필요가 없다. 나는 너의 장로이고 너를 멈추라는 명령을한다. 말하는. 그에게." ("I do not need to tell you anything. I am your elder and I demand you to stop. Talking. To him.")  
     Jimin sniffed, and it was at this point that Vinny realised that he was _crying._ He stood up and patted him soothingly on the back, shooting a glare to Yoongi, who appeared confused when he did so. "Yoongi, we were just talking. Why did you have to explode on him like that?" He said with help from the translator.  
     "I was not... I did not mean to make him cry, I just... did not want him talking to you."  
     "Why? What's us having a conversation about an interview gonna hurt? The only person worried about it is you,"  
      Yoongi turned away and huffed, but the expression on his face told Vinny that he'd gotten through to him. "...미안하다, Jimin. 나는 너에게 소리 지으면 안된다," ("... I'm sorry, Jimin. I shouldn't yell at you,")  
     Jimin lifted his watery eyes to Yoongi, but didn't move completely from his submissive posture. "나를에게 화가 나지 마세요, 형, 내가 잘못한 것을 이해하지 못한다." ("Do not be angry with me, hyung, I do not understand what I did wrong.")  
     "그건 네 잘못이 아냐, 나는 단지 스트레스를 받았다. 그냥 잊어." ("It's not your fault, I'm just stressed. Just forget it.")  
      Jimin didn't seem convinced, but he nodded anyway, accepting the hug that Yoongi pulled him into. They embraced, then pulled away, Jimin turning to Vinny with a small smirk and saying in broken English, "Let me know... about, about din-dinner, okay?"  
     Vinny nodded, and then Jimin took his leave, walking past Yoongi towards the other members, who were standing next to the photographers looking very confused. Once he was out of earshot, Vinny stopped recording on his phone and pulled up the translator. "Yoongi, I know that you already know who I am. I saw the subscription notification on your phone,"  
      Yoongi stiffened, his eyes growing wide. However, he didn't say anything, so Vinny continued, "Why didn't you just tell me that you knew who I was? I wouldn't have minded talking to a fan. Sleeping with you would've probably happened, too, you didn't have to lie just to be with me."  
     "I was not sure." Yoongi said, not looking at him. "I was not sure if it was you or not, but when we listened to your music I realized that it was, and I... I was scared. I did not want to lose the chance I had been given,"  
     "But why? Are you—"  
      "I'm in love with you," Yoongi said in English rather loudly, making a couple of the staff members freeze and look at them. Yoongi covered his mouth, countenance full of fear, like he hadn't meant to say that, his eyes darting around the room and legs taking a step back away from him; God, just seeing him made Vinny forget why he was even upset, his body and soul swelling with so much emotion for him that he almost couldn't take it.  
     "It's okay, it's okay," He held out his hands in a gesture of comfort, trying to look as forgiving as possible. "I know, Yoongi, it's okay. I... feel the same way, in a sense. I'm into you, and I want to give this a chance, but you need to calm down with the jealousy. As hot as it is, Jimin was just asking me about my music, it's not like we're fucking or something."  
     "You... like me, too?"  
     "Well, yeah. I thought it was kind of obvious, considering I'm here pretending to be a journalist so I can spend more time with you," Vinny laughed a little, making Yoongi do so, as well.  
     "You are right, I am just... yeah, I just need to calm down. It is just like, I have never felt this way for anyone, especially not someone I had never met until now. It scares me, both the feeling and the possibility of losing you to someone... more interesting and attractive than I am."  
     Vinny huffed a laugh, brushing his hand over Yoongi's before holding it, lacing their fingers together. "Whose hand am I holding right now? Who did I forgive for lying to me? And who..." He leaned in close to him and whispered in his ear, "Do I want to fuck me senseless when we go back to your hotel room?"  
      Yoongi gasped lightly and gripped Vinny's hand tighter, his gaze on him when he pulled back heated and full of growing desire. Vinny allowed himself to smirk at getting him riled up so quickly and said, "Now, let's go actually interview your band mates so I don't get kicked out."

     Thankfully, no one had really been paying attention to what they'd been doing, so Vinny didn't have to explain why they'd been holding hands and whatnot.  
      He asked the other members what they liked the most about making music, how they coped with being on tour for so long, what they liked to do in their free time, things of that nature, and got a lot of good content for his blog post. At least now he had something to show the managers in case they asked how much content he had so far. He began writing his blog post on the ride back to the hotel and got the first couple paragraphs done just as they pulled into the parking garage behind the hotel; he wasn't sure what they were going to do after this, but he hoped it involved food 'cause his stomach was practically eating itself—what was he, 16? Why was he so hungry all the time?  
     Looking at the time on his— _Yoongi's_ —phone, he realised his hunger was justified, considering it was after one and he'd eaten over six hours ago. Damn, it'd been that long already? "Hey, we're all going out to lunch before we head to practice. Want to join us?" Namjoon asked, his voice snapping Vinny out of his thoughts.  
     "Oh, uh, where at?" He questioned in return, shoving his phone into his pocket.  
     "The View,"  
     Vinny's eyes almost popped out of his head. _"The View?_ You guys know that place is expensive as hell, right? Like I'm talking $200 for two people?"  
     "Yeah, it's fine, we're good for it."  
     Okay, Vinny was seriously beginning to question just how fucking famous these people were.  
      Of course, they had to change into nice clothes before they went there due to the dress code, which resulted in them having to buy Vinny an outfit from one of the many high-end clothing stores in the area; he tried to convince them to just let him go back to his apartment to change into the only dress clothes he owned, but Yoongi insisted on buying him something "as a show of appreciation", whatever that meant. So he got fitted at a suit shop and chose a wine red dress shirt, a black pleather tie, black fitted dress pants, and a pair of black Chelsea boots. He hadn't wanted a jacket, but Jimin insisted on a dark grey peacoat since his own brown military one didn't match and wasn't nice enough, which admittedly hurt his feelings a little, but he had to agree with him on it.  
      He did his best not to look at the price when they rang everything up and tried to gauge how much it was from Seokjin's expression when he swiped their credit card, but he didn't react, simply paid, grabbed Vinny's bag of old clothes (they let him wear the outfit out of the store so that they wouldn't have to go back to the hotel again to change) and then led them all back outside to the car that was waiting to take them to the restaurant. Yoongi fixed his hair while they drove, pinning it back with a bobby pin and styling the remaining bits with water from his water bottle. "You look nice, Vinny," Taehyung commented, pausing in his conversation with Jimin to watch what Yoongi was doing.  
      "Thanks, Taehyung, I'd hope so." Vinny replied, earning him a laugh from everyone.  
     "You clean up really well! Very handsome." Namjoon said.  
      "Red's your colour," Seokjin added.  
      "Makes your eyes pop!" Hoseok said, making the motion with his hands, smile bright.  
     Jesus, was it just normal to be this nice in Korea? Vinny wasn't used to being complimented so much, especially not by people as attractive and famous as they all were. It was a little overwhelming. "Vinny,"  
     He turned to Yoongi. "Hm?"  
     "We are doing these things because we like you. Do not worry so much, it really is fine." Translation-Yoongi told him, a soft smile on his face. "You deserve nice things,"  
     "I know. Thank you, Yoongi,"  
     Yoongi squeezed his hand a second, then let go, turning away to talk to Jeongguk, who was doing something on his phone. Vinny watched them all interact as he wrote on his phone; they all seemed so comfortable with each other, communicated so easily, like being together was the most natural thing in the world. It had Vinny longing for friends of his own... Like yeah, he had friends, but no actual best friends, no people he could trust enough to talk to about personal things, nobody to turn to when he couldn't handle things on his own. Except...  
     Yoongi. He wanted Yoongi to be that person for him, so badly that it scared him. The connection they shared couldn't be ignored even if it was entirely illogical and had warning sirens going off in his head that it was just infatuation, a byproduct of the one night stand. Even before they'd had sex and were just talking, he'd been intrigued, enticed even, by him. A magnetic pull that begged him to come closer, get closer, _be_ with him, and Vinny, for once in his life, was going to follow his heart instead of his head. If he got burned, well... wouldn't be the first time. He'd get over it.  
     For now, he was just happy to have their legs touching.

∆

      Surprisingly, they'd been able to make a reservation for lunch since someone else had cancelled, so when they arrived at The View, the valet took the car to park it and they all filed inside and up the elevator, the host when they arrived finding their reservation and leading them to their table near a window; true to the name, the view from the window was amazing. Vinny actually couldn't believe that he found New York City beautiful for once. "Wow! You can see the whole city from here!" Namjoon gasped, almost pressing his face to the glass as he looked out the window.  
     Everyone got up to crowd around it, but then Yoongi said, "이 장소는 멋지다, 얘들 아, 나는 우리가 이렇게 행동해야한다고 생각하지 않는다." ("This place is nice, guys, I do not think we should act like this.")  
     They all sat down again, just as the waitress came over to them with a wine menu. "Good evening, sirs, shall I recommend you the wine special for today?" She asked.  
     Namjoon began to translate, but then the waitress interjected, "Oh, do you need a Korean waiter?"  
     "If you don't mind," Namjoon said.  
      "Not at all. I'll send Suhi over to you."  
     She took her leave, their new waiter, Suhi, showing up soon after. "안녕하세요. 오늘 와인 한잔 드릴까요?" ("Good afternoon. Would you like a glass of wine today?")  
     "오늘 특별한 무엇입니까?" ("What is the special today?") Jimin asked.  
     "Chassagne-Montrachet Morgeot, 샤도 네 랍스타 좋아할지도 모릅니다." ("Chardonnay is best with lobsters.")  
     "병 걸릴거야." (We'll take the bottle.") Namjoon said, and the waiter nodded before walking away.  
      Vinny could field a guess as to what had transpired and just looked at his menu, content with whatever wine they chose. He'd have to chose two different things, though, for a red and white wine, depending on which they'd decided upon. Everything was far, far too expensive and it pained him to try and make a decision, but as he perused the lunch menu, Jimin leaned over and asked, pointing to a dish on the menu, "What this say?"  
     Vinny looked and read the dish. "Roasted winter venison loin. Uhm," He took his phone out and put it into Google Translate, showing it to Jimin, who turned up his mouth.  
     "Meat, yes?"  
     Vinny nodded. "Yeah,"  
     Jimin made a noise of thought and continued to peruse his options. Vinny read over the few things they had for the starter course as he set his phone on the table with the translation app open, leaning down a bit to speak into it. "What do you guys want for the starter?"  
      "Well, he offered us a Chardonnay that pairs with lobster, so we should get the bisque," Seokjin said via his phone.  
     "But I do not want lobster." Jeongguk pouted. "I want the ravioli,"  
     "Me too." Taehyung said.  
     "Then get that. It will just taste weird with the wine."  
     "I am sure a light wine would go fine with pasta," Yoongi added. "Do not take my word for it, though."  
     Vinny knew nothing about pairing wines with food; all he knew was that Coke and pizza was the best combination—he very clearly didn't eat out at nice places.  
     A few moments later, Suhi came back with a bottle of wine in a bucket of ice, him setting the bucket down on the table before taking up the bottle and a corkscrew. He yanked the cork out with ease, then began pouring them all a glass. "첫 코스를 위해 무엇을 원합니까?" ("What would you like for the first course?") He asked.  
     "너희들이 원하는 걸 안다고?" (Does everyone know what they want?") Namjoon asked, and everyone nodded, Vinny doing so, as well, just to feel included.  
     In order around the table, they all told Suhi what they wanted to eat (that's what Vinny extrapolated, anyway), ending on Vinny as he was the last to know for sure what he wanted. "I'll have the garden greens salad, light dressing," He told Suhi.  
     "Excellent choice, sir. It'll be right out."  
     Suhi took his leave; Vinny was rather thankful for the wine, half-hoping it'd help to calm his nerves at least a little—he could really go for a cigarette right now. He'd slip out to have one, but they were in a high-rise, so it'd be a long ways to go just to smoke. Looks like the wine would have to do for now. He took a long drink, downing about half the glass, and when it hit his stomach he was overcome with the need to piss, _bad._ "Hey, I gotta pee, I'll be right back," He whispered to Yoongi, who nodded.  
     "Ok, hurry back."  
     "Aww, can't stand being without me?"  
     "Actually, stay in the bathroom now that you said that."  
     Vinny laughed as he walked away, smiling back at Yoongi, who was doing the same, his eyes turning into those wonderful crescent moon shapes that he loved so much. He really was smitten with him.  
     The bathrooms were found on the other side of the restaurant; inside, the decor matched the rest of the place, with a sofa and coffee table on the opposite side of the wall, two potted plants marking the entrance. Everything was either red, gold, brown, or white, and Vinny had to admit, it felt pretty fucking awesome to be peeing in a white urinal with gold handles and cakes that smelled like roses. As he unzipped his pants, he heard the door open and close behind him, the light tapping of dress shoes up to and then beside him—"Hello, Vinny,"  
     Oh, it was just Jimin, also unzipping his pants to pee. "Hey, Jimin."  
      It was then that he noticed that Jimin had chosen the urinal right next to him; well, they did know each other, so it wasn't too weird really. Besides, the rule was probably a Western thing. He saw Jimin move out of the corner of his eye and glanced at him to find him... peeking down at his crotch and chewing on his bottom lip, his eyes transfixed on his dick. Vinny turned red; he didn't think he was that big, really—average at most. But, when he saw Jimin's, he understood why he seemed so impressed: his dick was _small._ Not extraordinarily, probably like two or three inches, but for a soft dick he was fairly tiny. "Uhm," He mumbled, moving to put himself away, if anything to get Jimin to stop staring. However, just as he was about to, Jimin grabbed his wrist, his other hand gripping his tie and tugging him down a little. His actions read aggressively, but his countenance said otherwise: bottom lip slightly quivering, brows dipped, soft cheeks flushed red.  
     "I—" He mumbled, furrowing his brows a bit. "My English... no good. But... I like you lot. Want us to go," He paused a second, seemingly trying to find the right word. "Date. 로맨틱." ("Romantic.")  
     Vinny found himself incredibly... perplexed, at how alluring he seemed to be to these new friends of his. As much of a confidence booster as it was, it was also obvious that it was going to cause a lot of problems. He wanted to be truthful, but he didn't know if Yoongi wanted the other members knowing that they were together just yet—hell, he thought they'd been pretty obvious. It looked like Jimin hadn't gotten the message, however. He opened his mouth to speak, but just then, Jimin's small, soft hand slid gently from his wrist to press flat against his lower abdomen, a cold shiver running up and down Vinny's spine at the way-too-intimate contact, causing his eyes to go wide just a bit. "Jimin, don't, come on," He managed to say, tugging his hand away.  
      Jimin cocked his head to the side, confusion clouding his face. "No?"  
     "I'm... I'm seeing someone, right now."  
      The confusion stayed. _Fuck_ Vinny wished he knew Korean. "Me, I," He pointed to himself, then grabbed his own hand. "Taken. With someone,"  
     After a second, Jimin pulled away, his whole body slumping over as though deflated. He didn't lift his head when he spoke, saying, "...Sorry. 나는... sorry." (...Sorry. I... sorry.")  
     Before Vinny could say anything else, Jimin was zipping up his pants and taking off out of the bathroom; Vinny nearly collapsed, but managed to catch himself by gripping the counter behind him, a harsh rush of air exhaling out of him—Jesus Christ. Maybe being hot shit wasn't the greatest thing, after all, not that he ever wanted to be. Taking a couple deep breaths, he regained his composure; zipped up, adjusted his tie, patted some cold water onto his face, fixed his hair, afterwards heading back to the table with his heart still beating a million miles a minute in his chest.

      It wasn't until dessert rolled around that he was asked about what had happened in the bathroom, and to be honest it kind of jumpscared him when Yoongi finally asked, as he was nursing his fourth glass of wine and everyone else was distracted, "Something happened in the bathroom, right? Between you and Jimin."  
     Vinny paused in tipping his glass back, his eyes finding Yoongi in his peripheral vision. "Yeah. Don't worry about it."  
      "Well, now I am going to worry. Tell me, Vinny, please?"  
      Vinny internally keysmashed, externally setting his glass down with an inaudible sigh. "He told me he really liked me and wanted to go out on a date with me and I told him I was taken. He got upset and booked it. That's really all that happened,"  
     "That is it?"  
      "Essentially. I didn't tell him it was you I was seeing, just in case you didn't want anyone to know yet."  
     "I would not have cared, but thanks."  
      Vinny wrapped an arm around him and shoved his nose into his mess of white hair with a kiss, making Yoongi giggle a little and playfully push at his chest. When he stole a glance at the others, his gaze locked onto Jimin's on accident, and the defeat that formed there in his warm brown irises had Vinny quickly looking the other direction.


	4. The Confrontation

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Vinny confronts Yoongi about the way he was acting when they first met.

     They had time, briefly, when they drove back to the hotel to change out of their fancy clothes before heading to their stage practice, to talk; Vinny cornered Yoongi in the bathroom when he went in there to wash his face and take his makeup off, translator out as he asked, "Can we talk about something?"  
     Yoongi faltered in rinsing his face off, but it lasted no longer than half a second. "Sure, what is it?"  
     "Why were you in that restaurant?"  
      "What do you mean?"  
      Yoongi stepped towards the door, but Vinny stayed where he was, taking up the entire doorway and leaning against it, his unbuttoned shirt still partially tucked into his pants and revealing his slightly hairy chest. He hadn't meant to look so seductive, but he supposed it helped in this situation. "You know what I mean. Both Namjoon and Hoseok told me that you weren't the kind of person to go out in a city you don't know by yourself and pick some stranger up. So what were you doing there? And why did you seem so manic?"  
     He stared down at Yoongi, who had his head bowed and was oddly still, the only movement coming from him being the rise and fall of his chest as he breathed, slow and even. After what felt like an eternity, he said, "I was... feeling bad about myself, and I thought, getting compliments from people would help me feel better. But it was too overwhelming," He fidgeted with his fingers, tossing his head to clear his hair from his eyes. "There were so many people, and they were all talking too fast for me to try and understand what the hell they were saying, so I hid in the bathrooms. And that is where you found me."  
      "So you were just having a bad night, huh?"  
     "Night, day, week, life. But yeah."  
     Vinny snorted, a small smile turning up the corners of his mouth. "What about with me, hm? How did you know who I was, let alone watched my streams without knowing English? And why were you so eager to be with me? I can't possibly be that alluring,"  
     Yoongi shrugged, fidgeting with the bracelets on his wrist. "I am studying English very hard, doing my best to learn a lot, and since I like watching YouTube in my free time, Namjoon suggested that I try translating videos into Korean to study that way. However, it was a little difficult to do with people's faces on-screen 'cause I kept getting distracted, so I took to streamers instead, which is..." He looked to the floor, Vinny barely catching a glimpse of pink dusting his cheeks. "How I found you."  
     Vinny was about to say something flirtatious when Yoongi unintentionally cut him off by saying, "You know, I... actually did not really know what you looked like before I met you here," They made eye contact, Vinny feeling a hot shiver shoot up and down his spine at the unexpected intensity. "I knew you were white, and that you had brown hair and green eyes, but nothing else. Especially not that you were hot, though that did not stop me from having a huge crush on you anyway."  
      The breath was knocked out of Vinny's chest—he'd... had a crush on him? Without even seeing what he'd looked like? Vinny honestly didn't know how to handle this information, let alone respond. "But... why?"  
      "Why what?"  
     "Why did you like me even though you didn't know what I looked like? I can't be that interesting."  
     "You are not, I can not lie about that. But..."  
      Vinny waved his hand for him to continue, Yoongi rolling his eyes but smiling and saying, "There's something about you that I feel I can relate to. You and I, we're one in the same: surrounded by friends but still very alone. That, and we love music. You are very alluring to me in that sense,"  
     Vinny couldn't believe his ears at this; God, Yoongi was so overwhelming in the way he spoke, how he described things, it was like he was speaking to Vinny's soul directly. And Christ, he didn't know how to handle it. "Yoongi," He said, lowering his hands to settle on Yoongi's thin shoulders, staring deep into his beautiful brown eyes, "This is all new to me, dating someone, even just having romantic feelings in general, so I'm sorry if this is too much or if I fuck up, but I think we're meant to be, you know? Like..." He gripped Yoongi tighter and stepped closer to him, trying to maintain eye contact but couldn't for more than a couple seconds due to how embarrassed he felt. "Every time you talk to me, it's as though you're speaking to my soul, like we're on the same wavelength. You touch me and my body doesn't know anything else; I think about you all the time and, and even though we only just met, I feel like we already did lifetimes ago. I don't know," He shrugged and chewed his lip. "But I'd like to. If you want."  
     Silence for only a second, and then he was being kissed, Yoongi wrapping his arms around his neck and hiking a leg up around his hip; Vinny grabbed at him with desperation, burying his hand in his hair and fisting the back of his shirt, their tongues tangling together in the heated, passionate kiss they were locked in. Vinny moaned and rocked his hips forward into Yoongi's, pulling a muffled whimper from him that shot straight down to his dick like lightning. "I love the sounds you make," He huffed, breathless. He pulled back to look at him and, upon seeing the deep red flush across his cheeks, his kiss swollen, pink lips, and deep, emotional eyes, his whole body turned electric and was covered in goosebumps. "You're so beautiful, Yoongi."  
      "Make love to me," Yoongi said in a trembling voice, humping lightly against Vinny's leg, "I want you badly."  
      "Do we have the time? You have stage practice in a few minutes, don't you?"  
     "I don't care," Yoongi said in English. "I want you,"  
     Vinny honestly didn't want to argue; biting his lip, he took his dick out from the front of his boxers and stroked it a few times, asking Yoongi, "Can you get the lube for me?"  
     Yoongi left the bathroom briefly, returning with a small bottle of lube and no pants or underwear. He squirted some onto his fingers before handing the bottle to Vinny, then began to finger himself open, one leg propped up on the side of the tub. Vinny coated his hard cock in lube and stroked slowly as he watched Yoongi fuck himself, mesmerized by the sight of his long, slick fingers sliding and scissoring in and out of his ass. "God, you're so fucking hot," He groaned.  
     Yoongi locked eyes with him, brows dipped and mouth hanging open. "This is all for you, baby." His weak, rough voice told him in perfect English.  
      Just that alone had Vinny so unbelievably close to coming. Giving his dick one last tug, he walked over to Yoongi and pulled him close, picking him up and wrapping his legs around his waist so that he could pin him to the wall. Yoongi moaned when he did, driving Vinny to thrust straight into him all the way to the hilt—it felt like he was on fire. "Shit! Vinny!" Yoongi cried, tossing his head back.  
     Vinny dropped his head onto Yoongi's shoulder and whined, asking in a choked tone, "You—mh, okay?"  
     "제발 내게 씨발 제발 제발!" ("Please fuck me please please!") Yoongi yanked on Vinny's hair as he blabbered, his back arching up off the wall.  
     Hissing, Vinny began to thrust in deep, hard strokes into his prostate, jacking Yoongi off with one hand as he did so to make it even more intense. Fucking him felt just as amazing as it did the first time, almost more so, and he couldn't get enough of it—of _him._ He was getting all of him, all of his body, but he wanted more, more of his touch. Whimpering, he kissed him hard, tangling his fingers in his mess of white hair and jerking him off faster. Yoongi's thighs trembled and his nails dug into his scalp and skin, muffled mewls making their way past their liplock and into the still air of the bathroom; they increased in pitch the harder and deeper Vinny fucked until, with one last lick to his mouth and tug of his cock, he came all over Vinny's hand and his shirt. Vinny moaned at the feeling, as well as the twitching and tightening of Yoongi's ass that milked him through his orgasm that followed not long after, a rattling groan rumbling from his chest. They stayed there in each other's embrace, basking in the post-coital afterglow and the warmth of the other's body, Vinny placing butterfly kisses to Yoongi's cheek, neck, and shoulders, smiling at the giggles he received for doing so. "형! 오이, 어디야? 우리는 필요하다—" ("Hyung! Oi, where are you? We need to-")  
     They whipped their heads towards the open bathroom door to find Jeongguk standing there, eyes wide and mouth slightly open in apparent shock; he was holding his phone out like he was taking a picture or video, but he quickly put it away. "Jeongguk! 어... 이것은..." (Jeongguk! Uh... This is...") Yoongi muttered, nudging at Vinny.  
     Vinny let him go and helped him to the floor, quickly shoving himself back into his pants before taking off his shirt to assist in covering Yoongi up. Jeongguk diverted his gaze, his fingers wiggling at his side and weight shifting from leg to leg. "죄송합니다, 나는... 죄송합니다." ("I'm sorry, I... I'm sorry.")  
     Vinny took his phone out to translate. "Sorry you had to see that," He said.  
     Jeongguk nodded. "괜찮아, 난 괜-괜찮아." ("It's okay, I-I'm fine.") A beat, then he continued, "너-너 둘이 ... 같이 있니-있니?" ("You— are you two... are you together?")  
      Yoongi gave a singular nod. "네. 그는 실제로 기자가 아니며, 그는 내 남자 친구입니다." ("Yes. He's not really a journalist, he's my boyfriend.")  
     Although Vinny couldn't keep up with the whole conversation, he was able to translate pieces here and there; the fact that Yoongi considered him his boyfriend had his heart skipping a beat and stomach doing flips. He smiled a little and wrapped his arm around him, holding him close. "괜찮아. 글쎄, 우린 지금 연습해야 해. 그래서 ... 우리가 복도에서 너를 만날거야." ("OK. Well, we have to practice now. So... we'll meet you in the hallway.") Jeongguk said, shuffling in place a second, then taking his leave.  
     "Did you see his phone?" Vinny asked as he walked with Yoongi out to the rest of the room so he could change.  
     "What phone?" Yoongi asked in return, pausing in putting his underwear on.  
     "Jeongguk had his phone out when he walked in on us,"  
     Yoongi froze. "Oh _shit."_  
     "It was probably nothing, Yoongi, don't worry about it."  
     "Yeah, hopefully,"  
     It didn't take them long at all to change, and once they had they went out into the hallway to find the other members, as well as a few crewmembers and managers. Jimin was staring at them hard, gaze locked on Vinny entirely, even when one of the other managers was speaking to them; Vinny tried not to notice it, but it was hard, especially when he could feel the tension from Taehyung and Jeongguk alongside that—maybe Jeongguk having had his phone out was the cause of that. Judging from how Taehyung kept darting his eyes between the two of them, he was probably right.  
     Everyone was dressed in comfortable, normal clothes for their stage practice, but even still they all looked too expensive for their own good. Vinny wondered if that was what life was like when you were rich—even your everyday clothes could be Gucci. Must be strange. "When did you two start dating?"  
     Vinny was startled rather suddenly from writing his article by Taehyung asking him that in English as they were all driven to their stage, every single person in the car turning their heads to face him. "Keep it down, Taehyung," Namjoon said in a quiet, stern tone.  
     "Sorry," Taehyung said, then continued in a much more conservative voice, his accent and pronunciation a little off, "How long you been dating?"  
     Vinny looked to Yoongi, who shrugged and waved his hand; he took that as a sign for him to answer and responded, "Only about a day or so, but Yoongi knew me before we met. He had a big crush on me from watching my streams,"  
     Everyone started losing their minds at that—well, everyone except Jimin, anyway—hitting Yoongi on the arm and back and laughing at him. He seemed to take it in stride, smiling and rolling his eyes. When he turned away, his eyes caught Jimin's, who was holding out his phone to him. He read the translation on the screen, and his stomach feel to his feet. "I watched your streams too. I wanted you too. If it had been me, would things be different?"  
     There was no way of knowing that, and if there was, Vinny didn't know of it; what he did know was that what he felt for Yoongi, the connection they shared, was real, more real than anything he'd ever known, and he didn't feel that with Jimin. "Would we have had sex? Maybe. But I felt and still feel a connection with Yoongi that I've never had with anyone else, so I don't think so. I'm sorry Jimin," He told him through the text translator. Jimin's whole body sagged and seemed to deflate after he read it, turning away from him to instead curl up against the seat of the car, face hidden in his folded arms. God, he felt so fucking guilty for continuously shooting down his hopes, but if he was being honest, Jimin was doing it to himself—he was taken. That was all there was to it. He was happy was Yoongi, and nothing was going to change that.

      Practice ran on for a few hours, ending close to 6; it was past the time that he needed to be heading home to stream, so, after he got the manager Minhyuk's information and sent all of his videos, pictures, and documents to himself via Google Drive, he said his goodbye's to everyone (sneaking a kiss from Yoongi when he went to get his stuff from their room), then got in the Uber that Yoongi had called for him and headed home.  
     He made it back around 6:30 and collapsed on his sofa—Jesus Christ he was exhausted. He hadn't even been the one to do all the photoshoot and dancing stuff and it had worn him out as though he had. As much as he didn't want to, he forced himself to get up and change into something clean, afterwards finding his phone still shoved in his bag and ordering himself a pizza for dinner. Once he'd finally sat down at his computer, he turned it on, scrolling through his Twitter to catch up on any news he'd missed while he'd been gone for the day; eh, some movie reviews, game announcements, Trump saying stupid shit, nothing important. He tweeted out on the official Twitter that he was streaming, then put it away, putting on his headset as he opened up Twitch and went live. He watched the viewer count go steadily upwards as he downloaded all of the media for his article, saying into his mic, "Hey guys, how's everything goin' this evening?"  
     He skimmed over chat, picking out a few messages to respond to with ease. "Yeah, been a long day for me, too. I was out all day doing an interview with this band from Korea called BTS. I dunno if you guys have heard of them, but they're pretty popular from what I know."  
     It was fairly 50/50 in chat with who had heard of them and who hadn't, but of that 50% he could clearly pick out the people who definitely knew who they were. "Heh, yes, _that_ BTS. I have an article and some video stuff that's gonna go up either later today or tomorrow, depending on how lazy I am. Don't expect anything too exciting, I'm not really used to this kinda stuff."  
     As he unzipped the files, he read, "'Who's your favourite'? Uhm, Yoongi, the guy with white hair. We get along really well, have a very similar mindset about things. He actually, uh... I'm not sure if I'm allowed to say this, but we actually exchanged numbers and Kakao names. Kakao is South Korea's main messaging app, for those of you who don't know. So I guess you could consider us friends."  
     As expected, chat took that and ran with it—he didn't mind, really. Although he tries to stray away from the mainstream, it was cool to be considered a part of something so huge, even if he couldn't say just how involved in it he actually was. Regardless, he, for the most part, only touched on the topic briefly for the short four-hour stream he did, stopping once it hit eleven so he could finish his article and start on editing his video, eating the rest of his pizza as he did so.  
     Around 12:30, he got a text on Kakao.

 **suga bear:** vinny, are you awake?

 **chrono vox:** yeah whats up?

 **suga bear:** just wanted to say hello to you. i miss you

 **chrono vox:** i miss you too :-{ how did the rest of your day go?

 **suga bear:** busy but okay. im working on a song for you right now and wanted your input

 **chrono vox:** i think youre more than qualified to make music decisions without me yoongi

 **suga bear:** whatever, just listen to this and tell me what you think

      He was sent an audio file and downloaded it, listening to it play with a slightly wistful expression—Yoongi was so talented. It was a rock-sounding song, but there was a twist to it that he recognized as wholly Yoongi that really turned it into a genre of his own. It was beautiful. 

**chrono vox:** i love it yoongi, its beautiful

 **chrono vox:** youre so talented, i really cant believe that someone can make music as great as yours

 **suga bear:** shut up you sweet roll youre just saying that

 **chrono vox:** im not

 **chrono vox:** i really do think that you turn everything you touch into a song

 **chrono vox:** a melody that you put part of yourself in

 **chrono vox:** you did that to me the first time we met and i haven't been the same since, but in a good way

     Vinny chewed his lip; maybe he'd been a little too forward, but there was no going back now. He'd sent it and Yoongi was gonna read it and he'd have to live with himself knowing that. He kept proofreading his article and finished the last paragraph just as Yoongi responded five times in a row.

 **suga bear:** when i first watched your videos, i felt that deep connection you were talking about when we first met. my heart longed for you, to know you, and i could never get you out of my head. it was scary to me, having feelings for someone as deeply as i did, as i do, for you, but the more i got to know you the more i realized that i couldnt ignore it

 **suga bear:** meeting you for the first time in that bathroom was like seeing my dreams come true right in front of me, almost on the same level as my becoming successful for my music and rap. being with you has filled something inside me that i hadnt known was there, has made me more whole and full

 **suga bear:** i see the world and music differently. colours are brighter and there's more of them. i hear songs everywhere i go. that cloud over my head that always weighed me down has lifted some. its not completely gone and i don't think it ever will be, but its bearable now, thanks to you. your love has shown me a different world i never knew of and i thank you for that so much

 **suga bear:** youve given me a gift that i could only ever hope to repay in half with my music by giving you the same love youve given me. im not a superstitious person, and i dont really believe in fate or anything, at least i never used to, but vinny my love, baby, i think we're meant to be. with how perfectly you fit in my heart and soul, how could we not? 

**suga bear:** i love you with my everything

     It took a teardrop falling onto Vinny's phone screen for him to realize that he was crying, so when he saw and felt it, he was scared almost. The last time he'd cried was almost three years ago, when he'd relapsed in cutting himself after a particularly bad bout of depression and insomnia, but this was... different. He was _happy._ Really, truly happy, and it was so terrifying. But... with Yoongi, he knew it'd be okay. 

**chrono vox:** i love you too, yoongi. more than i can say

 **suga bear:** you dont have to. say it with your music

     Vinny opened up his music program to do just that.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> probably the last chapter, at least for now.


End file.
